Street Parking in Woodstock

In the Fall 2007 City Scene is a clearly written article about on-street parking in Woodstock. The rules outlined are those that can be enforced by the police department. Other rules regarding off-street parking are enforced by Woodstock’s Code Enforcement Officer, who is not a police officer.

Most residents know about the 2AM-6AM on-street parking ban. Many know a police dispatcher can grant permission for a car to be parked overnight on the street, but the circumstances are limited. There should be coordination between the dispatcher and the beat officer, so that on-street parking permission is not abused. When there is ample room in a driveway, vehicles should be there and not on the street.

It would be interesting to learn the statistics from the police department for the number of tickets issued for 1) 2AM-6AM parking in each of the City’s four beats (patrol districts or quadrants); 2) vehicles on the street with For Sale signs; 3) vehicles parked in the parkway (the right-of-way next to the street); and 4) vehicles parked over a sidewalk. And what percent of tickets for (2), (3) or (4) were initiated by the officer without a complaint from a citizen.

Another common parking violation in Woodstock, but not mentioned in the City Scene article, is parking on the wrong side of the street. You’ve seen the cars with the driver’s door next to the curb or parkway in front of a house on a two-way street. State law requires cars to be parked with the right side of the car next to the curb on a two-way street.

This violation has been ignored for so many years in Woodstock that a huge uproar can be expected, if enforcement ever begins on a regular basis. Would it be fair to give one warning per address? Should it be one warning per vehicle? Or announce enforcement to begin in 30 days and give warnings for the next 30 days? There is probably no “right” solution to a problem that never should have been allowed to grow over the years.

AboveAverageDriver.com

What can one person do about reckless drivers, speeders, those who pass illegally? Well, sometimes …. not much. And there are those other times….

For starters, how about filing reports on www.AboveAverageDriver.com? Go to that site, register, and start publicizing errant driving by the kooks around here. If enough people file reports, the same license plates will begin showing up multiple times.

You can even check to see if your own plate has been listed.

I’ve been participating for 3-4 years and I continued when the originator burned out and transferred operations to a man in one of the western ‘burbs of Chicagoland.

Today I was passed by a speeder who had followed me in on Greenwood Road toward Woodstock. At the stop sign at Charles Road, a westbound car on Route 120 got between her and me. She made up for lost ground, though, passing that car and me in the 55MPH no-passing zone between Charles Road and Thompson Road. Who was she? The driver of a dark blue minivan with Wisconsin plates, 488 LCL.

When I post on www.AboveAverageDriver.com I omit the space in license plate numbers. When searching for plates, try it both ways. Without any spaces and with spaces shown on plates.

Have fun. Don’t get mad; get even!

Stay Off Fresh Paint

The other day I was driving in Crystal Lake and following an IDOT crew that was repainting lane lines on U.S. 14. The crew was doing a great job, working in the inside through lane.

The problem was with rude drivers who thought they were so special that they could cruise up the blocked lane until they were right behind the last IDOT truck and then drive on top of the freshly-painted lane lines to change lanes and pass on the right.

A few of the drivers were thoughtful enough to wait for an intersection and change lanes (albeit, against state law) in the intersection where no lines were painted. But some of the others (gee, why were the vehicles all huge SUVs and large pick-up trucks?) just drove across the lines and tracked white paint into the right-hand lane.

There must be a law that prohibits drivers from doing this. Well, there shouldn’t even have to be such a law. It takes only a minute or so for the paint to dry.

One suggestion to IDOT is to have the last truck in line be the one with the sign on the tailgate reading “STAY OFF FRESH PAINT.” On that day, that truck was the second truck in line, and its sign was blocked by the third IDOT truck in line.

Another solution would be for the second IDOT truck, from which red traffic cones were being placed to prevent drivers from driving on the new lane lines, to follow at a slightly greater distance, but not enough for a car to squeeze in. And for the third truck to follow a little farther back.

The whole idea is to keep drivers off the freshly-painted lane lines until they quickly dry.

Maybe a “Trooper in a Truck” is needed with the paint crews. He could target the violators and radio ahead, when patrol officers would make the stop and write the tickets.

Business Cards – Free (almost)

Thinking about getting a business card? Not sure what you want, but just know you want one? Want to save some money?

Check out www.vistaprint.com Before you order, be sure to sign up for their email advertising specials. You know, that spam stuff? Only it’s not spam. It’s valuable advertising that will save you money.

If you’d like 250 “free” cards, you just pay for the shipping. There is a small legend on the back side that reads about free cards from VistaPrint.

If you want to order their “premium” cards (no advertising on the reverse side), you’ll see super-low prices advertised in their occasional email advertising.

I’ve ordered from VistaPrint many times and have never been disappointed. The cards aren’t expensive-looking (that’s because they aren’t expensive), but they are nice.

How many business cards do I have?
A photo card for Advocate/Personal Coach.
A gunslinger card for Advocate/Personal Coach (when I saw that format, I burst out laughing and knew that card was made for me!).
A Traffic Crusader card.
A Pre-Paid Legal card.
A card for my self-appointed position as Grand Stump Warden of the Woodstock Chapter of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club.
Two-three cards for my regression hypnotherapy practice.

I’ve thought about hitting one of the G.I. surplus stores for one of those olive-drab ammo belts; you know, the ones with all those pouches? Then I could keep a few of each card with me at all times!

Only 345/7,600 Properties Flooded?

According to the Baxter & Woodman engineering report now online at www.woodstockil.gov, only 345 (4.5%) of Woodstock’s 7,600 housing units reported basement backup or flooding problems during or immediately following the flood event or later.

How many property owners didn’t bother to report problems, after the City so quickly informed residents that the flooding wasn’t the City’s fault and that residents should contact their insurance companies? Nice job passing the buck, because the insurance companies probably said, “Hey, it’s not our fault. You’re not covered.”

For example, the address of one resident on 4xx South Jefferson Street, outside whose house was the largest pile of debris from a flooded basement that I saw in Woodstock, is not listed. He just got busy and ripped out all the damaged walls and flooring from his flooded basement. Another resident, on 3xx South Madison Street, didn't bother to report his basement back-up and flooding to the City. How many others didn't report their problems???

Every resident experiencing flooding or basement back-up should inform the City, even now. And, if you believe the City is at fault, contrary to statements by the City, then file your claim with the City.

Will affected residents band together and hire their own engineering report?

Check out this report and look for your own address or the address of a neighbor or friend whose property experienced flooding. Addresses are listed at the end of the report. To get there quickly after you open the report online, just hold down the CTRL key and press END. If an address is missing, inform the City ASAP.

What was the total loss in Woodstock? I asked this question at the last City Council meeting, where I asked about the amount of loss known to-date and that a running figure be kept and, of course, made public. I was surprised at the audience applause after my short request to the City.

Maybe the applause was because I spoke so briefly…

Wrong-Way City Truck

What first caught my eye, as I drove away from the Square on Dean Street this afternoon, were the four-way flashing lights and the flashing rooftop light bar. Oh, oh, what's up? Then I noticed the truck was parked on the wrong side of Dean Street, just one parking space north of South Street. This is across the street from the Unitarian Church at Dean and South Streets.

Then I noticed a woman standing on the curb by the driver's door of the truck, leaning against the door. Must have been a personal conversation: right? It was 3:59PM and, when I drove by, I noticed that the truck belonged to the City of Woodstock. Didn't see a Unit Number on the truck, but the license was M155060.

Wait a minute! Am I in Chicago? Or was I really still here in Woodstock? I circled the block and parked on Dean Street, facing South Street, and watched as the conversation continued. I held my breath a few times as northbound cars bore down on me. Phew.... that was close. How did some people get their driver's licenses? Is the depth perception of some drivers so bad (or so good) that they could miss me by inches.

Finally, at 4:14PM, the driver and the pedestrian finished their conversation, and she headed into the house on the corner, entering the door on the diagonal front of the house. The driver of the pick-up truck drove north on Dean Street against the left curb, still using his emergency lights, and then pulled back over onto the correct side of the street. Last time I checked, Dean Street is a two-way street there. Yep, and it still is.

I had my fingers crossed that a Woodstock police officer might get out of roll call early and swing up to the Square to check out things. I wonder what he would have done...

Write a ticket for driving on the wrong side of the road?
Issue a written warning and forward a memo to the City department to which the truck is assigned?
Tell the driver to move on and direct traffic while the truck was driven back onto the correct side of the street?
Just honk and wave at the fellow City employee?

I'm still irritated over the headlight ticket I got in January. The officer had told me he would give me a warning (the headlight had been replaced two weeks before and had gone out 20 minutes before I got stopped right in front of my house). But, after speaking with a second officer, he issued me a $75 ticket.

So, when I wonder whether "discretion" will be used with a driver who commits a moving violation or a fellow City worker, I am not unduly suspicious of how a violation will be handled.

Perhaps the manager of the City department of this truck will explain here why his employee was parked illegally on Dean Street for 15 minutes while he engaged in what appeared to be a personal conversation with the woman who lives in the house on the corner. He may have been on his own time; was he? But there was no reason for him to drive illegally onto the wrong side of the street, just so he could stop with his driver's door against the curb. This action forced him to drive again on the wrong side of the street, when he pulled away from the curb.

Okay, so Woodstock is a small town. If it is going to act "grown up" some of the time, such as back in January, then it needs to act grown up all the time. Which way will it be?

Flooding Report Online

Better get more ink for your printer and a double latte before you begin reading the 75-page report of the engineering firm about Woodstock's recent flooding. As promised by the City, the report was posted on the City's website at www.woodstockil.gov on Friday. It's posted as a .pdf file which means, at least from my computer, I cannot copy and paste portions deserving comment. Sections to be quoted must be re-typed. Perhaps some day I'll figure out how to convert a .pdf file to a .doc file, from which information can then be copied and pasted.

Reading and understanding it before Tuesday's 7:00PM City Council meaning gives new meaning to Labor Day.

Does the City really know only about so few affected homes? My suggestion that the City mail a survey or questionnaire to every property owner must have fallen on deaf ears. How many residents experienced flooding damages and loss but didn't call the City for help? Will the number of properties (residences and commercial) affected by the flooding be closer to 1,000 than to 235? There is only one way to find out.

Tell everyone you know NOW to report their damage and loss to the City. Call City Hall (815) 338-4300 and ask to be directed to the correct office for reporting flooding damage.